Does anyone have lots of info on Batman world?

Question

I'm working on a Batman website right now. If you have some good notes, info, articles, news, pictures or anything on Batman, leave your e-mail address at this page and I'll get back to you. The stuff mustn't be stolen from other websites.

Answer 1

Batman (originally referred to as the Bat-Man and still sometimes as the Batman) is a DC Comics fictional character and superhero who first appeared in Detective Comics #27 in May 1939. He has since become, along with Superman and Spider-Man, one of the world's most recognized superheroes.[1] Batman was co-created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, although only Kane receives official credit for the character. Batman's secret identity is Bruce Wayne, billionaire industrialist, playboy, and philanthropist. Witnessing the murder of his parents as a child leads him to train himself to the peak of physical and intellectual perfection, don a costume, and fight crime. Unlike most superheroes, he does not possess any superhuman powers or abilities; he makes use of intellect, detective skills, technology, and physical prowess in his war on crime


Publication history
In early 1939, the success of Superman in Action Comics prompted editors at the comic book division of National Publications (later DC Comics; D.C. is short for Detective Comics, now a subsidiary of Time Warner) to request more superheroes for their titles. In response, Bob Kane created a character called "the Bat-Man". His collaborator Bill Finger offered such suggestions as giving the character a cowl instead of a simple domino mask, wearing a cape instead of wings, wearing gloves, and removing the red sections from the original costume. Finger came up with the name "Bruce Wayne" for the character's secret identity.

In Jim Steranko's History of the Comics, vol. 1, Bill Finger reveals, "Bruce Wayne's first name came from Robert Bruce, the Scottish patriot. Wayne, being a playboy, was a man of gentry. I searched for a name that would suggest colonialism. I tried Adams, Hancock...then I thought of Mad Anthony Wayne."[2]

Finger wrote the first Batman story and Kane provided the art. The Bat-Man was a breakout hit, with sales on Detective Comics soaring to the point that National's comic book division was renamed "Detective Comics, Inc." Seen nowadays as having been one of the first examples of a classic comic book superhero archetype, Batman has been considered by some to have been one of the first comic book anti-heroes. [citation needed]

Kane signed away any ownership that he might have in the character in exchange for, among other compensation, a mandatory byline on all Batman comics. This by-line did not, originally, say "Batman created by Bob Kane"; his name was simply written on the title page of each story. The name disappeared from the comic book in the mid-1960s, replaced by credits for the artists and writers who actually worked on the stories. In the late 1970s, at the same time as Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster began receiving a "created by" credit on the Superman titles, Batman stories began saying "created by Bob Kane" in addition to the other credits. Finger did not receive the same recognition. Although Finger did receive credit for other work done for the same publisher in the 1940s, he began to receive limited acknowledgement for his work on Batman in the pages of the comic book only in the 1960s, as a script-writer (for example, "Letters to the Batcave", Batman no. 169, Feb. 1965, where editor Julius Schwartz names him as the creator of The Riddler, one of Batman's recurring villains). However, his contract, in contrast to Kane's, left him only with his page rate for the stories he wrote and no by-line even on most of the Batman stories he had written. Finger, like Joe Shuster, Jerry Siegel, and some other creators during and after the Golden Age of Comic Books, would resent National's denying him the money and credit that, he felt, he was owed for his creations. At the time of Finger's death, in 1974, he had not been officially credited as a co-creator of the character. Kane himself, however, in later years willingly acknowledged Finger's contributions to the character while also insisting on his own role. [3]


Evolution of the character
Inspirations for Batman's personality, character history, visual design and equipment include movies such as Douglas Fairbanks' The Mark of Zorro, The Bat, and Dracula; characters such as The Shadow, The Phantom, Sherlock Holmes, Dick Tracy, Jimmie Dale, The Green Hornet, Spring Heeled Jack, and even Leonardo Da Vinci provided a basis.

Early Batman stories frequently use the grim tone of the film noir and gothic horror films of the day, with Batman showing little remorse over killing or maiming criminals.This interpretation of Batman softens in Detective Comics #38[4] in 1940. Dick Grayson/Robin (named after Robin Hood [4]) is introduced based on Finger's suggestion to Kane that Batman needed a "Watson". "In Batman #7, (1941) Batman is made an honorary member of Gotham City's police department, moving him even farther from his dark, vigilante roots. Batman's tone continues to stay light for the next several decades.

In Superman #76 (1952), Batman first teams up with Superman and learns his secret identity; following the success of this story, the separate Batman and Superman features that had been running in World's Finest Comics instead featured both together; this series of stories ran until the book's cancellation in 1986. The stories feature the two as close friends and allies, tackling threats that require both of their talents.

Starting in the mid-1950s, Batman's stories gradually become more science fiction-oriented, an attempt at mimicking the success of the top-selling Superman comics of the time. New characters such as Batwoman, Ace the Bat-Hound, and Bat-Mite (the latter two paralleling Krypto the Superdog and Mr. Mxyzptlk of the Superman titles) appear. Batman has adventures involving either odd transformations or dealing with bizarre space aliens. Batman is a highly public figure during the stories of the 1950s, regularly appearing at such events as charity functions and frequently appearing in broad daylight. In 1960, Batman becomes a member of the Justice League of America, which debuts in The Brave and the Bold #28.Editor Julius Schwartz presided over drastic changes made to a number of DC's comic book characters, including Batman in 1964's Detective Comics #327. Schwartz introduced changes designed to make Batman more contemporary and return him to more detective stories, including a redesign of Batman's equipment, the Batmobile, and his costume (introducing the yellow ellipse behind the costume's bat-insignia), and brought in artist Carmine Infantino to help in this makeover. The space aliens and characters of the 1950s such as Batwoman, Ace, and Bat-Mite were retired. This makeover soon became known as the "New Look" Batman. Julius Schwartz created Aunt Harriet to live with Bruce and Dick. This influenced the campy Adam West Batman TV series in 1966, which ran until 1968.

Writer Denny O'Neil and artist Neal Adams made additional changes to Batman when they started working on the comic, reintroducing some of Batman's earlier grimmer elements, starting with Detective Comics #395's "The Secret of the Waiting Graves" (1970). Dick Grayson had been sent off to college in a story written by Frank Robbins, making Batman a loner once again. O'Neil's tone influenced Batman's comics through the rest of the 1970s and into the 1980s; 1977 and 1978's stories in Detective Comics written by Steve Englehart (with art by Marshall Rogers) are held by many as a high point of this era Writer Frank Miller grounded Batman further in his grim and gritty roots with the limited series Batman: The Dark Knight Returns (1986), which takes place in a possible future, and 1987's four-issue "Batman: Year One". Batman: The Dark Knight Returns' popularity was nothing short of phenomenal and raised sales for comics across the board. Alan Moore and Brian Bolland continued this dark trend with 1988's Batman: The Killing Joke, in which the Joker, attempting to drive Commissioner Gordon insane, cripples his daughter Barbara Gordon, kidnaps him, and tortures him physically and mentally. These stories and others like them helped to raise the image of comic books beyond mere children's entertainment. Batman: The Dark Knight Returns and stories following it (such as John Byrne's Superman revamp) also severed the close friendship of Batman and Superman, replacing it with a more antagonistic relationship.

Stories like these, in turn, have set the tone for the last two decades of Batman comics. Tim Burton's Batman movies, Warner Bros' Batman and Batman Returns features a darker, more Gothic Batman; the popularity of those movies in turn led to the noir-ish Batman: The Animated Series. The ongoing comic book series, meanwhile, has continued in this gritty trend, and this tone inspired imitators in other comic books and films.

"Batman: Year One" is significant in that it is set in, and significantly revises, Batman's early days. Since the original publication of Year One, many creators have set their stories in Batman's formative years, and the Batman title Legends of the Dark Knight in particular often features stories that take place in Batman's early days. Many of the stylistic notes of Year One, specifically text captions designed to look handwritten on note paper, have also been used quite successfully by other authors. In addition, the general concept of a Year One book, taking a fresh look at the origins of an older character, as well as showing their learning process, has been embraced by the comics industry as a whole. Other comics which have since gotten a "Year One" treatment include Spider-Man and the Justice League.

Batman's evolution continues through the 2000s. 1988 saw Jason Todd, the second Robin, killed by the Joker, and in the years following this, Batman takes an even darker, often excessive approach to his crimefighting. 1993's "Knightfall" series introduces a new villain named Bane, who critically injures Batman. Jean-Paul Valley, known as Azrael, is called upon to wear the Batsuit during Bruce's convalescence. 1994's Zero Hour introduced Batman's status as an urban legend. In 1998, Gotham City is destroyed during the "Cataclysm" storyline, and Batman is deprived of many of his technological resources. DC's 2005 crossover event Identity Crisis has Batman discovering that JLA member Zatanna had edited his memories, which leads to Batman losing trust in the rest of the superhero community

Character origins
Created in the time before the modern concept of the superhero, the creation of Batman was inspired by characters such as The Shadow, Zorro, The Phantom and other noir-style crimefighters (The Spirit, The Spider, etc.).

The Shadow, who debuted earlier in the 1930s in radio and pulp fiction, had at least two major similarities to Batman: his "wealthy playboy" alter ego, and his penchant for operating under cover of darkness and using fear to disarm his criminal targets. Despite being a "good guy", he was made in the vein of the noir anti-hero, and thus would not hesitate to gun down his enemies.

Zorro, who first appeared in pulp fiction in 1919, likewise has inherits wealth from his parents, and poses as a harmless gentleman of high society. Like Batman, he operates from a hidden cave near his home, and is known for fighting for justice for the common man. Great emphasis is placed on his acrobatics and education, two attributes which Batman possesses.

One could argue that certain of these traits were almost unavoidable in the crimefighters of the time[citation needed]. However, Batman's creators have routinely acknowledged these two characters as influences. Various retellings of the night Bruce Wayne's parents are murdered have depicted them as having just seen a "Zorro" movie, and, as far as The Shadow is concerned, Batman's creators specifically took care to distinguish their hero from the well-known crimefighter, taking away his gun early in his comic book adventures, and eventually giving Batman an anti-gun stance.

One can even trace Batman's roots further, though to lesser degrees of similarity, by looking at the influences for Batman's influences: Zorro was likely inspired by such characters as The Count of Monte Cristo and The Scarlet Pimpernel; the former was a wealthy man motivated by revenge over wrongs committed in his past, the latter a swashbuckler possessing an alter ego. Zorro may have been based upon real-life personas such as Joaquin Murrieta, a Mexican bandit sometimes compared to Robin Hood, and William Lamport, an Irishman who fought for Mexican independence in the 17th century.

Although those influences seem to bear little resemblance to the Caped Crusader, they all possess an aspect of vigilantism. Well before characters such as Superman, who boldly fought crime in broad daylight with their superpowers, the heroes of literature that youths admired were mortal and depended on cunning and wit to survive. Aside from occasional "reboots" by comic book writers, most of the above comic book and pulp characters are generally out of print. This makes Batman one of the last actively-published stories of an old-fashioned vigilante hero from the Golden Age.

Batman first appears in Detective Comics #27, May 1939, where he is already operating as a crime fighter. Batman's origin is first presented in Detective Comics #33 in November 1939, and is later fleshed out in Batman #47, the 1985 four-issue limited series America vs. the Justice Society and 1986's Secret Origins (Vol. 2) #6. As these comics state, Bruce Wayne is born in the 1910s to Dr. Thomas Wayne and his wife Martha, two very wealthy and charitable Gotham City socialites. Bruce is brought up in Wayne Manor and its wealthy splendor and leads a happy and privileged existence until the age of eight, when his parents are killed by a small-time criminal named Joe Chill on their way home from the movie theater. Bruce is subsequently raised at Wayne Manor by his uncle, Philip Wayne (introduced in Batman #208, Jan./Feb. 1969).

Bruce Wayne swears an oath to rid the city of the evil that had taken his parents' lives. He engages in intense intellectual and physical training and studies a variety of areas which would aid him in his endeavors, including chemistry, criminology, forensics, martial arts, and gymnastics, as well as theatrical skills like disguise, escapology, and ventriloquism. He realizes, however, that these skills alone would not be enough.

"Criminals are a superstitious and cowardly lot", Bruce Wayne remarks in Detective Comics #33, "so my disguise must be able to strike terror into their hearts. I must be a creature of the night, black, terrible..." As if responding to his desires, a bat suddenly flies through the window, inspiring Bruce to assume the persona of Batman. His debut as the Caped Crusader in 1939 initially earns him the ire of the police; however, his relations with the law that haw by the early 1940s.In 1940, Bruce takes in the orphaned circus acrobat Dick Grayson, who becomes his sidekick, Robin. In late 1940, Batman becomes a founding member of the Justice Society of America (DC Special #29), although he only participates in few cases with them as an honorary member. During World War II, he also teams up with the All-Star Squadron and several military heroes such as the Blackhawks, Sgt. Rock, and the Unknown Soldier.

Batman continues to function in Gotham City through the 1940s and into the 1950s. After the introduction of DC Comics' multiverse in the 1960s, it is retroactively established that the Golden Age Batman lives on the parallel world of Earth-Two. It is revealed that in the mid-1950s, after a brief flirtation and adventuring with Kathy Kane, Bruce Wayne partners with and marries the reformed Earth-Two Catwoman, Selina Kyle (as shown in Superman Family #211); the two have one child, Helena Wayne. Batman's activities soon lessen, as he goes into semi-retirement, only returning to action to engage in special cases, with Robin taking over much of his functioning in Gotham City. His last recorded case with the Justice Society prior to his death is during the cross-world crisis initiated by King Kull from Earth-S, in which he battled the Joker one final time.

In the late 1970s, Bruce Wayne's life becomes tumultuous, as he deals with the death of his wife Selina, who is fatally blackmailed by criminals into going into action one more time as Catwoman (as seen in DC Super-Stars #17). After Selina's death, Bruce permanently retires as Batman, deciding to fight crime in another fashion. Upon the retirement of Commissioner Gordon, the Earth-Two Bruce Wayne takes over the post of Gotham City police commissioner. It is during this period that the supervillian known as the Psycho Pirate influences Wayne to have a vendetta against costumed heroes, particularly his former teammates in the Justice Society. Although he is freed of this influence, he is stricken with cancer (as seen in America versus the Justice Society #4) and continues to view them with suspicion. He authors a diary "exposing" the team's alleged collaboration with Nazi Germany, while subconsciously attempting to warn them of the return of Per Degaton. This information allows a now grown up Grayson to apprehend the temporal criminal along with the Justice Society.

Prior to the diary being revealed, Wayne is forced to go into action one final time as Batman, when a criminal named Bill Jensen gains superpowers from a sorcerer named Frederic Vaux. Jensen and Wayne fight each other, Jensen eventually using his powers to destroy both himself and Batman[2]. Wayne is laid to rest next to his wife Selina; after Vaux is defeated, the sorcerer Dr. Fate uses his powers to erase the knowledge of Wayne's secret identity from human memory, making all think the two had perished at almost the same time. (Adventure Comics #461-463).

After the 1985 12-issue limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths, this version of Batman and all memory of his existence are retroactively erased from history (along with Earth-Two's Robin, Catwoman and Huntress), with various activities in his career being attributed to Flying Fox, Rex Tyler and/or Dr. Charles McNider in the new continuity. However, in 2006, after the Infinite Crisis, some of his friends and acquaintances remember him again. In a post-Infinite Crisis issue of JSA, the Earth-Two Batman returns in ghost-form with other dead members of the JSA to help Jakeem Thunder and his Thunderbolt battle the Gentleman Ghost. When Jakeem Thunder, unaware of the existence of a parallel universe version of the Dark Knight, asks the Thunderbolt how it is possible for someone like Batman, whom he knows not to be dead, to appear as a ghost, the Thunderbolt responds by saying, "It's complicated".

Silver Age
The Silver Age of comic books in DC Comics is sometimes held to have begun in 1956 when the publisher introduced Barry Allen as a new, updated version of The Flash. DC Comics gave several other superhero identities they had not used for a long time (such as Green Lantern) to other new characters but also updated characters they had published during the interim between the Golden and Silver ages. Batman is not significantly changed by the late 1950s for the continuity which would be later referred to as Earth-One. The lighter tone Batman had taken in the period between the Golden and Silver Ages led to the stories of the late 1950s and early 1960s that often feature a large number of science-fiction elements, and Batman is not significantly updated in the manner of other characters until 1964's Detective Comics #327, in which Batman reverts to his detective roots, with all science-fiction elements jettisoned from the series.

It is retroactively established within the pages of the 2006 limited series Infinite Crisis (when Bette Kane, a character from the pre-1964 era, is transferred to a re-created Earth-Two) that the pre-1964 Silver Age stories happen on Earth-Two, despite the fact that the year 1964 is years after the date of retirement of the Earth-Two Batman proposed in Superman Family #211, and that the Earth-One Batman has adventures with Superman, the Justice League of America, and other heroes in stories published before 1964. Much in the same way that many of the characters and creative concepts which remain after the 1964 revamp aren't given new origin stories (with some characters even seeming to recall some of their pre-1964 adventures), various new elements added to Batman's origin, background and history typically associated with the Silver Age were introduced as early as the 1950s, and are for that reason discussed in this section
While the Golden Age and Silver Age distinctions are useful for discussing the character's evolution over the decades, said evolution is gradual, and the Silver Age Batman is in essence the same character as the Golden Age version. The character as he appears near the beginning of the Silver Age (in the mid-1950s) and after his 1964 revamp is different in many ways from how he appears near the end of the Silver Age (in the mid-1980s) due to many minor revisions and new directions in the character's publication history. As summarized in various later Silver Age stories, including 1980's Untold Legend of the Batman limited series that thoroughly retell Batman's Silver Age origin and history, Bruce Wayne is raised by wealthy socialites Dr. Thomas and Martha Wayne in Wayne Manor. Eight year-old Bruce sees his parents murdered by small-time criminal Joe Chill, after which he is raised by his uncle Philip Wayne. Bruce swears to seek revenge on all criminals, and launches himself into a lifetime of dedicated training similar to the Golden Age Batman's training.

At some point early in his training, Bruce wears a costume similar to that of the future Robin's, in order to anonymously receive training from Gotham City police detective Harvey Harris (Detective Comics #226). He and his guardians visit Smallville, where he meets the youthful superhero Superboy, with whom he works on several cases. Bruce Wayne attends college, taking various criminology and law-related courses, but soon decides that being a police officer isn't the path he should take. After graduating, Bruce ponders how to handle criminals alone in his study when suddenly a bat flies through his study window; he decides to create a bat costume, and calls himself "Batman".

Sometime after the start of his crimefighting career, Bruce takes in orphan Dick Grayson, whose parents had been killed by gangster Boss Zucco and his henchmen, and trains him as his sidekick Robin.

In Detective Comics #235 (September 1956), Batman learns that his parents' killing had not been chance, but an assassination ordered by gangster Lew Moxon. Shown in flashback, while Bruce is a child, his father wears a bat costume similar to Batman's future costume to a masquerade party, where he encounters and stops the mobster. Moxon swears revenge against Dr. Wayne and hires criminal Joe Chill to arrange a mugging that will result in their deaths. Batman, wearing his father's bat costume (his usual costume having been torn while in action) tracks down Moxon, but the panicked mobster, recognizing the costume, inadvertently flees into the middle of traffic, where he is struck by a truck and killed.

Batman meets and regularly works with other heroes, most notably Superman, whom he began regularly working alongside in a series of team-ups in World's Finest Comics, starting in 1954 and continuing through 1986. Batman and Superman are usually shown as close friends. Batman becomes a founding member of the Justice League of America, appearing in its first story in 1960's Brave and the Bold #28. In the 1970s and 1980s, Brave and the Bold became a Batman title, in which Batman teams up with a different DC Universe superhero each month.

In 1969, Dick Grayson attends college as part of DC Comics' effort to revise the Batman comics. Additionally, Bruce also moves from Wayne Manor into a penthouse apartment atop the Wayne Foundation building in downtown Gotham City, in order to be closer to Gotham City's crime. Bruce spends the 1970s and early 1980s mainly working solo, with occasional team-ups with Robin and/or Batgirl. Batman's adventures also become somewhat darker and more grim during this period, depicting increasingly violent crimes, including the first appearance (since the early Golden Age) of an insane, murderous Joker, and the arrival of Ra's Al Ghul. In the 80s, Dick Grayson becomes Nightwing.

Modern Age
After the 12-issue limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths, DC Comics "rebooted" the histories of some major characters in an attempt at updating them for then-contemporary audiences. Frank Miller retells Batman's origin in the storyline "Batman: Year One" (Batman #404-407), which emphasizes a grittier tone to the character. Many stories of Batman's Silver Age/Earth-One career remain canonical in the post-Crisis universe, with his origins remaining the same in essence, despite alteration. While Dick Grayson's past remains much the same, the history of Jason Todd, the second Robin, is altered, turning the boy into the orphan son of a petty crook, who tries to boost the tires from the Batmobile. Also removed is the guardian Phillip Wayne, leaving young Bruce to be raised by Alfred the butler. Additionally, Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman are no longer founding members of the JLA.

Most Batman stories written during this era either carry on from where the Crisis left Batman's life, or retold his early years. "Batman: Year Two" continued Frank Miller's work, and later stories such as Batman: The Man Who Laughs, Batman: The Long Halloween and Batman: Dark Victory told of Batman's first encounters with the Joker, Two-Face and Robin respectively also following "Year One". A Secret Origins story also evaluated Batman's life before "Year One" in "Batman: The Man Who Falls". Beginnings to the careers of Robin and Batgirl are revised, and this era of Batmans solo time will be chronicled in the titles "Legends of the Dark Knight" and the upcoming "Batman Confidential".

Batman's evolution continues through the late 1980s, notably with the 1988's "Batman: A Death in the Family" storyline, for which DC Comics created a 900 number for readers to call to vote on whether Jason Todd lived or died. Jason was killed by a narrow margin of 72 votes.[citation needed] Batman works solo until 1989's A Lonely Place of Dying, in which Tim Drake becomes the new Robin. In the retroactive Elseworlds tale Batman: Son of the Demon, Batman marries Talia Al Ghul. The marriage is annulled and Batman is unaware that she bears his son.

In 1993, the same year that DC published the "Death of Superman" storyline, the publisher released the "Knightsaga" storyline. In the storyline's first phase, "Knightfall", new villain Bane critically injures Bruce Wayne, leading Bruce to ask Azrael to take on the role of Batman.

After the end of "Knightfall", the storylines split in two directions, following both the Azrael-Batman's adventures, and Bruce Wayne's quest to become Batman once more. The story arcs realign in "KnightsEnd", as Azrael becomes increasingly violent and is defeated by a healed Bruce Wayne, returning the mantle of Batman to its creator. Bruce is not ready to return, however, and instead has Dick Grayson fill his shoes before returning once more.

1994's company-wide crossover Zero Hour, changes aspects of DC continuity again, including those of Batman. Noteworthy among these changes is that the general populace and the criminal element now considers Batman an urban legend rather than a known force. Similarly, the Waynes' killer is never caught or identified, effectively removing Joe Chill from the new continuity, rendering stories such as "Year Two" non-canon. Attempts in the 2000s have been made to reintroduce elements such as Joe Chill In 1998, Gotham City is destroyed during the "Cataclysm" storyline, depriving Batman of many of his technological resources. Lex Luthor rebuilds Gotham at the end of the "No Man's Land" storyline. Bruce Wayne is later framed by Luthor for murder in the "Bruce Wayne: Murderer?" and "Bruce Wayne, Fugitive" story arcs, although he is later acquitted.

Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee began a 12-issue run on Batman in 2003. Lee's first regular comic book work in nearly a decade, and the series became #1 on the Diamond Comics sales chart for the first time since Batman #500 (1993). The "Batman: Hush" storyline introduces Tommy Elliot, a childhood friend of Bruce Wayne's, who had signficant influence on him during his youth. As Hush, Elliot attacks Batman by coordinating many of the hero's enemies, and a large number of them appear, including the Joker, Scarecrow, Poison Ivy, and the Riddler. Batman reveals his identity to Catwoman and the two became romantically involved for a brief time, until Batman's growing sense of distrust ended their relationship.

In 2004, DC published the War Games crossover, in which Stephanie Brown, initiates a gangland war that exposes Batman to the public and leads to her murder. The Black Mask rises to power and attempts to discredit Batman by impersonating him before he is stopped.

Although the Jason Todd whom Batman fights in the "Hush" storyline is revealed to be Clayface, later issues reveal that Batman does fight Todd during this encounter, but Clayface switches places with the former Robin mid-fight. Todd is shown to have been operating without detection for several years with the help of Talia al Ghul. Despite returning to life six months after his death, Jason does not reveal himself to Batman until he fights him as the Red Hood.

DC's 2005 limited series Identity Crisis, reveals that JLA member Zatanna had edited Batman's memories, leading to his deep loss of trust in the rest of the superhero community. Batman later creates the Brother I satellite surveillance system to watch over the other heroes. Its eventual co-opting by Maxwell Lord, Black King of the government organization known as Checkmate, is one of the main events that leads to the Infinite Crisis, which again restructures DC continuity. In Infinite Crisis #7, Alexander Luthor, Jr. mentions that in the newly-rewritten history of the "New Earth", created in the previous issue, the murderer of Martha and Thomas Wayne is captured, thus undoing the retcon created after Zero Hour. Batman and a team of superheroes, including the new Blue Beetle, destroy Brother Eye and the OMACs. During the Battle of Metropolis, Batman holds Alexander Luthor, Jr. at gunpoint, until Wonder Woman intervenes.

Following Infinite Crisis, Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson, and Tim Drake retrace the steps Bruce had taken when he originally left Gotham City, to "rebuild Batman". Wonder Woman and a depowered Superman are also missing for the following year, the events of which are depicted in DC's weekly series 52.

In the "Face the Face" storyline, Batman and Robin return to Gotham City after their year-long absence. Batman has left Harvey Dent as the city's protector, but Dent becomes a murder suspect shortly after Batman's return, after several criminals are found murdered with Two-Face's trademarks. Although Dent is cleared, he re-embraces his Two-Face persona. Additionally, Bruce adopts Tim as his son. The follow-up story arc, "Batman and Son", features Talia al Ghul and a boy who believes Batman to be his father and brings elements of Son of the Demon into continuity.

In relation to other heroes one year after the Infinite Crisis, Batman helped create Wonder Woman's new identity, Diana Prince, and has begun screening other heroes for candidacy in the new Justice League of America along with Superman and Wonder Woman. Recently in Justice League of America #2, Superman and Wonder Woman privately conversed while Batman took a call from Commissioner Gordon and voted between the two of them whether Batman himself should be included in the new League. Their explanations and voting results have not been given, as the story is currently ongoing.

Answer 2

no